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Mark, excellent job! Turned out beautiful. I sent you a PM by the way. Mike

Excellent machining on those front wheels! Looks like you machined them in halves? Mike

I really like the way the black paint accentuates the profile of the car where it meets the white. There's only one line that could give you the perfect profile and you nailed it. My favorite era of Corvette and in my mind doing it bumper less in a road racing theme is the only way to go. Awesome build! Mike

The OP posted a link to the WIP photos in the very first post. You can find it below all of the photos in that first post. Mike

If you can get your hands on some Tyvek that ought to work well for a belt. It's as thin and easy to work with as paper but pretty much indestructible. It has a slight texture/grain to it, which just might help convey the look of leather. Mike

The intake and exhaust are looking really good. I'm partial to symmetry so the two balance each other nicely. You asked for color suggestions but I'm not clear if you're asking for comments on the engine color or body color. Since this build is all about the power plant, I would make sure the underhood area is bright in order to make the engine stand out. Inherent in the engine design, the intake, exhaust and cam cover are going to define what your eyes are drawn to. As such, I would treat these three items with different shades of polished metalizer finishes. Anything you can detail paint will add to its jewel-like qualities. Carefully placed splashes of color on the three primary components, as well as the turbo, should avoid any kind of monotone tendency. Since very little of the block will be visible, its color will be secondary in impact but might afford you another opportunity to introduce a subtle splash of color, peaking out from below. If you really want to cradle the engine with a high-tech surround, try simulating gold foil insulation but instead of applying strictly to the firewall, run it around the whole engine compartment. You can elevate that further yet by introducing a wrinkled finish to the foil. Would make a good contrast with the smooth metallic finishes on the engine. For body color, I'm always partial to dark blues with silver painted wheels. That's such a personal decision that I'm not sure I can really influence what's already floating around in your mind. All in all, just my two cents worth of suggestions. As unique as this build is, I'm sure the final product will be stunning regardless of colors and finishes chosen. Mike

That will make an awesome photo shoot when complete! If you can pull off the same stance on the '69 as you did on this C3 it will easily be my favorite of the whole group. Looking forward to seeing the rest come together in your quest. Take care and keep up the high standards! Mike

Cool concept and even better execution! That C3 is easily one of the nicest renditions I've seen of that particular era. Are you planning on additional generations to expand this group or perhaps apply a similar theme using a different car in place of the Corvette? Mike

Wait a minute, am I understanding this correctly? You took a 911 and converted it to a 356? If so, this is simply spectacular! Mike

Not a Nascar fan but this car is really well done and presents very well with the paint color and decals combined with the flawless build quality. After looking at the build pictures I do have one question. What material did you use for the insulation under the driver's legs and pedals? It just looks so right for that application and it conforms perfectly to the floor contours. Mike

Can you simulate the materials/fillers/primers on a scrap body to confirm compatibility before you shoot the real one?

Wow, great job detail painting the wheels! Excellent build! Mike

I really like this shade of blue. Great work so far! Mike

I'm sure you worked through this already but the center hinge tube wants to be attached to the outside face of the hood while the secondary hinge wants to be attached to the inside face of the hood. That gets you the maximum opening. I see your dilemma in trying to solder the tubes in that manner without adding a bunch more parts. Are you wanting to leave the hood fully open or just enough to show what's inside? I think the way you accomplished getting the hinges on there in the first place trumps the ability to fully open it. I see a yellowish/gold tint to the metal. Is that real or just a consequence of lighting? Is the metal easy or difficult to file? In other words, are you constantly having to clean the file or is there sufficient hardness to the metal that keeps the file clean? Awesome build and I'm looking forward to seeing more progress. Mike

Last ones... Mike

Few more shots...

Hey, this morning I was looking for scenery supplies for a diorama I'm going to build to display and photograph the N-scale 1910-1930 truck models I'm working on. As I was digging through various boxes, I came across this diorama I built back in 1994 to display and photograph my multimedia models of the Mack AC I designed and manufactured. I'd forgotten all about this so I dug it out and decided to snap a few photos just to see what kind of shots I could compose in such a small area (the diorama measures 4" x 6-1/2"). The new diorama will be approximately 12" in diameter. I thought the shots turned out pretty good and I should be able to do even better with the new one since it's so much larger. For what it's worth, this ramp allowed dump trucks to dump their loads directly into gondolas. You'll note the very end of the ramp tilts up to clear the locomotives. The dump truck is, in fact, one of my models from 1994. The Olds pickup is one of my new ones from a couple months ago, printed by Shapeways. Mike

Will you be adding upper arms to the rear axle? You'll either have to do that or create a second attachment to the rear axle for each of your lower arms. I'd hate to see that axle twist out from under the car, especially with twin motor, quad blower torque available. Mike

Here's a couple more pics from Google. Looks like this would give us a rough idea of what you're shooting for, color wise. Have you figured out a direction for the wheels/tires? Looks like most of them have the polished solid wheels, which might add some interest if you could figure out how to get wide whitewalls on the tires - that would add to your '50's era show car vibe. But that one with the wire wheels really caught my eye - they really give it a sports car look. I'd guess that wouldn't fit the show car influence you're looking for. Gotta say - this is a very striking car and you have really captured the essence of its lines and proportions. Very very well done, sir. Mike

The equivalent material from Shapeways is called "high definition acrylate", being a light cured liquid. The examples on their website show a support structure very similar to your parts. Since the application of the supports is fully automated, there's probably little that can be done to keep them away from delicate, "real" details so your printer's suggestion to split the engine into two halves is most likely the safest way to go. If you don't mind me asking, what was your cost for that body (I certainly understand if you prefer not to divulge this info)? This is the most expensive plastic material Shapeways offers which is why I stick with their direct jetted acrylic - the downside being a rougher surface. By the way, what scale are you working with for this build? Mike

Hey, thanks for the info! Anytime I've tried that I couldn't get rid of the "fuzz" that was so obvious in photos but yours looks really clean and smooth. Did you treat it in any way or add any paint to it? Mike

That really is one of the smoothest bodies I've seen printed. Do you recall what the material is (i.e. acrylic) and what the printing process is (i.e. liquid plastic hardened with laser or powder sintered with laser)? I can't wait to see the motor! I'm assuming that's also printed (?). I'd love to hear one of those in person - 2 liter, 70 degree V8 with max power at 6000rpm! Are you replicating a specific car or are you going with a personal choice as far as colors, wheels and stance are concerned? Really looking forward to seeing more of this build! Mike

Ha ha ha, I read the whole post before looking at the author's name and I had assumed this was one of your builds. Then I see your post about watching and I get all confused, lol. To the REAL author, this looks like a very cool project. The wire wheel spokes appear pretty thin, making them particularly suited to the car. Please carry on and keep us updated. Mike

Beautiful body and the layering really appears minor. What are your plans for the chassis, interior, engine - basically what are your plans for the rest of the car? Just a couple of images from Google... I still chuckle every time I see a Fiat "8V". As the story goes, Fiat thought Ford had trademarked "V8" so they used "8V" in order to avoid a legal battle. Mike

My vote, lol! These all happen to be the US version with the early "all caps" base where the word VOLKSWAGEN is fully capitalized, versus later versions where only the "V" is capitalized. Mike